roasted beet and arugula, grilled swordfish with salsa di giovanna, grilled peach and summer fruit with marscapone

last friday nite i hosted a special dinner for the boys. they've all heard i'm a foodie and that i can cook but have never tasted my cooking with the exception of an albondigas here and a green herb dip there. so i thought i'd pull out all the stops for this dinner for 7.

for hors d'ouevres, i served a bruschetta with red, yellow and green heirloom tomatoes tossed with fresh torn basil, minced garlic, extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper. the crostini was freshly sliced from a round loaf of sourdough from thoroughbread bakery on church st, toast in a grill pan for some deep grill marks, and finished off with a rubbing of freshly sliced garlic and drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. unfortunately i forgot to take a picture of the colorful bruschetta plated on a black tray, so you'll have to use your imagination.

onto the first plated course, roasted beet and arugula salad. here i roasted some red beets in the oven at 400* with some olive oil and sprigs of thyme tightly wrapped in foil. once they were knife tender, i let them cool, carefully peeled the red-staining skins, sliced into wedges and tossed with a bit of red wine vinegar and olive oil. i also made a vinaigrette with red wine vinegar and extra virgin olive oil in a 1 to 3 ratio and seasoned with salt and fresh ground black pepper.

i then lightly dressed mixed herbs and arugula leaves and tossed with sliced red onions, the beets, and dotted with creamy goat cheese. the result was a nice balance between the sweet, earthy beets and acidic red wine vinegar, and the soft and creamy goat cheese and peppery arugula.

for the second plated course, i seasoned 1/2 inch thick swordfish steaks with salt and pepper and brushed them with olive oil. these went down on a searing hot grill pan for a couple minutes each side. for the accompanying sides, i boiled a couple pounds of small red potatoes until knife tender and smashed them, skins and all, with a lot of extra virgin olive oil, thyme leaves for a lemony herbal note, and salt and pepper. i also sauteed yellow and pale green summer squash that were sliced into bite-sized chunks in a bit of olive oil and some fresh basil.

to plate, i scooped a big portion of potatoes down, followed by the grilled swordfish, and then topped with the summer squash. to finish the dish, i drizzled salsa di giovanna on and around the fish, an italian concoction of fresh lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil, thinly sliced garlic, and freshly chopped oregano and mint, along with salt and pepper to taste. the result flavors bring a bright lemony zest to the swordfish and moistens the meat nicely.

to finish the meal, i decided to go with something summery to balance the richness of the last course. i sliced a couple of ripe but still firm peaches on a searing hot grill pan until some great grill marks rode across both faces of the peach slices. while that was going i macerated raspberries and blueberries with a bit of sugar to give it a little bit of a sweet kick. marscapone cheese, an italian cream cheese, was whipped with a whisk and sugar to lighten the cream and sweeten it. that then went down on a small plate to anchor the grilled peaches and sweet berries and provide a creamy contrast to the naturally sweet and light summer fruit.

i served all the above with a great '08 chateau st. michelle dry riesling that had just enough fruit to brighten up the swordfish but enough body to counter the richness of the meal.

all in all, a great meal with the boys. plenty of wine and laughs. and everyone's plate was licked clean: the best compliment a chef could have. thanks for an awesome nite and dinner, boys!